


How Not to Conduct an Interview

by HeartNouveau



Category: The Hobbit - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Boss!Thorin, For The Moment, Journalist!Bilbo, M/M, One Shot, Stubborn Idiots, Thilbo, bagginshield, modern!AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-27
Updated: 2015-05-27
Packaged: 2018-04-01 14:20:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,141
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4023076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HeartNouveau/pseuds/HeartNouveau
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bilbo was known for his way with words, which was why he had been tasked with saving the reputation of Erebor, a mining company with a recent record of disaster. Of course, Bilbo would actually need an interview to write about in order to do that, and the infamously stubborn Thorin Durin has no intention of helping him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	How Not to Conduct an Interview

**Author's Note:**

> Hey all, so this is my first foray into the world of fanfiction. Well, publicly publishing it anyway. For the moment this will be posted as a one-shot, though I could easily be swayed into making it a longer more fleshed out fic. Especially since I already have the basic outline in my head and it is nagging at me to continue. Anyway, for your entertainment, I present my first bagginshield fanfic attempt. :)
> 
> P.S. I am sorry for the summary. I suck at them and titles.

Without a shadow of a doubt this interview would end in a disaster.

Bilbo couldn’t remember exactly how Gandalf had convinced him into doing this, likely through the use of vague and often confusing phrases. Far too often had Bilbo fallen into the trap of getting caught up and confused by the old man’s words, leaving him vulnerable to whatever trickery the man employed to get Bilbo to go along with his mad schemes. The first time it had been harmless, and Bilbo had been annoyed but convinced it wouldn’t happen again. Now he was just plain infuriated. 

Looking up at the imposing building across the street, the one he would have to go inside and stop dithering over eventually, Bilbo wondered just how he was going to survive the next hour or so. As a freelance journalist Bilbo had faced many unreasonable interviewees, and he liked to think he had built up some defences that allowed him to talk through and smooth over even the roughest interviews. This, however, would be a true test of those defences. If Bilbo Baggins was well known for his ability to convey a compelling story and talk his way out of any situation, Thorin Durin was well known for his stubbornly abrasive personality. That abrasive personality was the cause of all this really, that and the decimation of Erebor’s reputation after the leadership of Thorin’s grandfather, Thrór. 

Erebor had been a global figure in the mining industry for as long as anyone could remember, consistently finding itself first for market value and productivity with shareholders benefitting all round. A large part of this success was attributed to the transparent and very public image of the company, making the family something akin to celebrity even outside of the mining business with relations to prominent figures and appearances at high profile galas and events. For some time it worked in the company’s favour, with people clamouring to make deals and be seen associating with the company and hoping some of its image would make profit for them in turn. Until it ended up being the ruin of the company. What would usually be a private issue quickly became a public scandal as it became apparent that Thrór’s capacity for leading such a prominent company was coming under fire even within the company. It wasn’t entirely certain what the tipping point had been, but Thrór’s decision to endanger countless workers by pushing through unapproved plans for new resources, defying UN guidelines for human rights, had come close to ruining the company. The aftermath of the decision, the compensation for the disaster that ensued, almost crippled the company.  
Five years on, with Thorin having taken over amidst controversy and concerns over his public appearance, this was the reputation and image Bilbo was tasked with salvaging. One interview with him was supposed to save this company’s failing reputation and change public perception on the new CEO. No pressure then. 

\---

First impressions were, if possible, worse than Bilbo had expected. Once the journalist had managed to convince himself that he would survive this encounter without being incinerated, thrown from the top of the building, or any of the various scenarios his imagination had created, the actual walk to the boardroom where the interview would take place was uneventful. If only the rest of the meeting would run in the same vein. It became apparent that it wouldn’t as soon as he stepped in the door. The first thing to capture Bilbo’s attention was the striking figure of Thorin Durin at the end of the room, a tailored suit doing everything possible to highlight the strength and power in the businessman’s posture, and the second was the look the businessman was giving him. In all his life Bilbo had never seen a look that went right through him while managing to assess him at the same time, and, from the slight curling of the businessman’s lip, he decided he must have been found wanting. And he was right. Thorin hadn’t wanted this interview in the slightest but when Balin laid it out plainly for him there was no denying that the company was suffering greatly and needed a positive publicity boost. Not that Thorin thought an interview with him would do any good, and the man they had sent looked out of place – too soft and mediocre to make any strong impression. In contrast to Thorin’s underwhelming impression of Bilbo, the journalist was taken back by how the sheer presence of the businessman drew all focus towards him. Of course Bilbo had seen photos of the man, it was near impossible not to with them in every magazine going, but they didn’t capture the intensity of his features even while resting in a neutral expression. Yet what caught Bilbo most off guard were the arresting eyes that seemed constantly watchful of every move he made. It was near unnerving. 

“Hello, I’m Bilbo Baggins. Gandalf sent me here for the interview,” Bilbo announced once he’d reined his thoughts in to focus on the task at hand, miraculously undeterred by the heavy gaze that hadn’t left him. He would be polite, it was only right, and if the man refused to return the gesture then he would just get on with it. “He said that –“

“Can’t you just get on with it?” Thorin interrupted, nodding to the chair at an angle from him. This was a waste of time already, he wouldn’t prolong it just to indulge in pointless niceties. 

“Yes, I suppose so.” Bilbo conceded, taking the chair that was indicated and set himself up with his tape recorder and notepad. Maybe a bit old fashioned, since he knew quite a few journalists who videotaped their interviews only to transfer it all to paper later, but Bilbo preferred to write notes and ideas as they came to him and it seemed a little less intrusive than having a camera pointed at you the whole time. “Well, I’ll start with some background questions, just so that there’s a foundation to work on.”

“Why? Is it necessary when people reading this interview will already know all that you’ll be asking?” Thorin interjected, growing impatient with all the formalities that this man seemed so intent on seeing through and making sure they were acknowledged. Bilbo, on the other hand, was growing impatient with the businessman but hid it behind a polite smile as he counted to five. The man hadn’t thrown an outright tantrum like some memorable occasions but for some reason Bilbo found it all the more irritating, and to top it off it seemed like Thorin thought it was a given fact that people had heard of and knew about him. Arrogant.

“Yes, it’s necessary. They’re only brief questions, and I find that the simpler questions can help you ease into the interview so it goes more smoothly.” Bilbo reasoned, though he doubted the man would see it. Honestly, why Gandalf had agreed to this when Thorin seemed so set against cooperating with it all was beyond him. 

“I am not a child or one of your fluff pieces and interviews that you seem to favour, I am the head of a global company and can understand more complex matters than those you will be asking in your little PR piece.” The barely veiled insults – if they were veiled at all – made Bilbo balk at the man’s nerve. He was supposed to be doing him a favour, saving his company’s reputation from the ruin that it was in. He was not here to sit through the temper tantrum of a grown man with a power complex.

“Yes, I had noticed I was in the building for Erebor, which I do know is a mining company, and I had known who you were and what you did before I accepted this job.” Although I didn’t know how much of a pig-headed man child you were, Bilbo thought bitterly. His words and his demeanour might appear calm, but Thorin Durin had managed to get under his skin faster than anyone else in his memory had, and that included Lobelia Sackville-Baggins – an achievement no one should be proud of. At least his retort seemed to make the man hesitate before his next barb. Bilbo was almost certain he hadn’t imagined the incredulous look that appeared and vanished within the space of a second, and he rather thought that Thorin was far too accustomed to people just blindly agreeing with him because of his position. 

“Fine, I’ll skip over the simpler questions,” Bilbo yielded, if only because he wanted to leave before supper, “and get right to the bulk of the interview, but no complaints if you think I’ve missed something or there isn’t any foundation for what I’m asking because, trust me, it would have all been included in the questions I’m skipping.” While Thorin didn’t look placated by this, he did look as though he was ready to cooperate, albeit begrudgingly. 

“Right, so,” Bilbo murmured, flipping over the pages of his notepad as he tried to find a good point to start from, “ah, in recent years it has been reported that Erebor has been working with the UN to –“

“Next question.” 

“You haven’t heard the end of the question, and you had to have known I’d ask about what happened. It’s pretty much the entire point of the interview to establish what happened and then build –“

“Next. Question.” Thorin ground out, eyes boring into Bilbo’s, as if daring the man to try and go against him on this. _Deep breaths,_ Bilbo advised himself, _this isn’t any different to any of the countless infuriating interviews you’ve done before._ Even as he told himself this, Bilbo doubted it. For some reason this uptight business man was riling him up like no one else had. Once he’d taken several deep breaths, not feeling much better for it, Bilbo lifted his eyes to Thorin’s. Okay, so that hadn’t been a good idea as he was immediately reminded of just how piercing they were. Still, he wouldn’t just back down. Not completely. 

“Right, we’ll come back to that.” He stated, tone bland as if he wasn’t aware that his unwillingness to completely give in would aggravate the man sat across from him. “Next question,” Bilbo definitely didn’t smirk at the not so subtle dig. “The company has remained silent all these years on the exact details of –“

“No.”

“The events leading up to –“

“I said, no.”

“The resignation of Thrór, your grandfather –“

“Did I not tell you to stop?!” Thorin roared, the slam of his hand falling to the desk beside him emphasising the forcefulness of his tone. Bilbo was stunned into silence, the only consolation that he could see for Thorin’s behaviour was that his hand slamming onto the table seemed to be a by-product of him leaning forwards rather than an act of aggression in itself. In fact, Thorin’s demeanour wasn’t aggressive once Bilbo really looked at it, and what he saw almost – almost – made him feel guilty for pressing on with the question when he clearly knew Thorin wasn’t comfortable with it. 

Beyond the powerful composure that Thorin held in place, Bilbo could see the cracks that had begun to form as the mask was worn down by exhaustion, a sense of defeat, and even resignation. It was evident in the tinge of purple below the man’s eyes, the downturn of his lips that wasn’t entirely due to anger, but most of all it echoed in his eyes. Bilbo knew it was a tired cliché, but he had always determined to maintain eye contact in an interview as he believed it was the most accurate read on how a person truly felt. In the face of all this, Bilbo relented with a deep sigh. 

“Alright, I will admit I may have overstepped my boundaries,” Bilbo conceded, ignoring the snort of derision in favour of maintaining his calm and polite attitude, “but I won’t apologise. I am doing this interview for a reason, and you’re making it impossible for me to do my job. I know you thought this was a pointless exercise the minute I stepped in the room, and you clearly weren’t impressed with me, but I was at least willing to give it a shot. It’s not my fault you’re stopping me from managing to actually get a decent interview to publish.”

“It is a pointless exercise, nothing can come from a few words printed on paper. The company’s reputation stands on its tangible merits and productivity, that’s what a company is, not some fabricated ideas.” Thorin argued, though the heat was gone from his words. The CEO that was so sure of himself faded a little in the face of Bilbo’s frankness, and the journalist thought he was right that no one had ever really questioned him before now. 

“You do realise that your company’s reputation was desolated by a few words printed on paper, don’t you? Ordinary people don’t care about things that aren’t relevant to them, about things they won’t get to see, but they do care about the fact your family made themselves accessible through the tabloids. The fact that the company was more than just figures, that it put names and personalities to a ‘cold corporation’, is part of what made it successful.” Bilbo reasoned, able to articulate his point made him feel more like this was an equal share of ideas rather than Thorin dominated the meeting as he had been doing previously. Surprisingly, Thorin even seemed to be taking it all in with a hesitant nod of his head. Maybe they were getting somewhere. 

“Look,” Bilbo started again, encouraged by the fact Thorin seemed to be listening and hadn’t thrown him out of the building yet, “I can’t promise this will save your company, but I really am willing to try and help.” And it was true. Seeing Thorin as he had for the brief moment made Bilbo realise that he wasn’t as impervious or aloof as the distance of simply reading about him in articles or seeing his picture in the papers made him seem. He was a man that had lost his family under terrible circumstances and was suffering for it. Bilbo thought he could sympathise with that. 

When Thorin looked back up, any vulnerability that might have seeped through for the moment was gone, but the impression of it stuck with Bilbo even as he felt that assessing gaze look over him once more. This time he liked to think he wasn’t found as wanting as he had before. The look Thorin gave him was if not impressed, then begrudgingly respectful for the man’s honesty. It was a rare thing to find given his lifestyle.

“Fine,” Thorin agreed after a long pause, during which Bilbo had been beginning to think he’d be told to bugger off after all, “I’ll let you do the interview but I doubt we’ll have time now after all this. Perhaps we can –“ 

“Oh that’s alright I can get Gandalf to call again and reschedule.” Bilbo suggested before Thorin had the chance to change his mind, though from the brief chastened look on the man’s face that hadn’t been what he was hoping for. 

“I was going to suggest meeting outside of work so we would both have more time, given how this went.” Thorin explained, his face expressionless. Or at least it would appear to be, but Bilbo thought he was getting a bit better at reading the man after all that had happened in the comparatively short space of time and he saw the uncertainty there. 

“Oh,” Bilbo murmured, unsure of what context to take the offer. Surely nothing beyond the practicality of it, even if his imagination like to run a little wild and believe that Thorin wanted to see him outside of a business setting for other reasons. While Thorin was undeniably attractive – there was a reason so many magazines and tabloids were interested in him aside from his company – the man was stubborn to boot. Yet there was something about him that affected Bilbo in a way he hadn’t experienced before, even if that effect had been irritation and lack of civility for a moment during this meeting. In a different setting it could be an entirely different, positive effect. “I could do that. I usually finish work at about five and it’s half an hour away from here, so –“

“I can meet you here at half five tomorrow.” Thorin interrupted, though Bilbo felt it was more to get it out before he thought better of it rather than him being rude. 

“Alright,” Bilbo agreed, pausing at the tentative flicker of a smile that appeared from the other and telling his brain not to take that as flirting when it was just politeness, failing as he heard himself say, “I suppose it’s a date, then.”

“I suppose it is.” Thorin rumbled, the smile making a reappearance. Oh God. Bilbo had started this interview almost having an aneurysm from frustration and he was going to end it almost having a heart attack if the sudden jump of his heart at those words was anything to go by. Managing a weak chuckle, Bilbo set to packing his things away to hide the blush that was no doubt giving him away now. This was ridiculous, he wasn’t a tween anymore and he’d wanted to strangle the man no less than ten minutes ago. Eventually he coordinated himself enough so his heart was at a regular rate, his face was a normal shade of pink, and he could stand without the fear of his legs giving out from embarrassment.

“Great, I’ll be going then,” Bilbo said as he made his way to the door, Thorin following behind him, “and I’ll see you tomorrow to do the interview. I’ll just wait down by reception, since I don’t know where you’ll be so I won’t risk trying to find you.” _Just open the door, stop blathering, and leave,_ Bilbo scolded himself. He managed to open the door and step outside, but he made the mistake of turning to look behind him. The expression on Thorin’s face was unmistakable now and he was clearly amused. Although instead of making Bilbo even more self-conscious of himself, it made him realise just how ridiculous the situation really was; to start an interview wishing he’d never have to deal with the man again and ending it with the hopes he could spend more time in his company. Laughing to himself, Bilbo shook his head and set off down the corridor and only paused as he heard Thorin call behind him.

“All of this better not appear in your piece.”

With a huff of laughter and hidden grin, Bilbo called back, “I’m not making any promises.”

**Author's Note:**

> So, we've come to the end of my first piece of fanfic writing. Hopefully you enjoyed it (if not, then at least you stuck with it to the end) and thank you for giving it a chance. If anyone would actually be interested in me expanding on this AU, maybe reworking this and posting it separately, let me know. I have a fair few ideas on how this could escalate to an adventure worthy of the Company of Thorin Oakenshield. Well, maybe not quite that epic, but still. 
> 
> My tumblr account is [CanonicalCatastrophe](http://canonicalcatastrophe.tumblr.com/) if you're interested in immense amounts of fandom and the occasional ramble.


End file.
